AdamMY wrote:I am sure the last thing you want to buy is more items, but potters have items called "ribs" that can be wood, metal, smooth, jagged, etc... I was recently introduced to rubber ribs, which you get them a little wet and rub them over the surface of your piece, it works wonders smoothing everything out. ( It should work on yixing clay, as it is somewhat similar to using water to join pieces of clay which I have seen yixing potters do.)

I would avoid sanding while dry at all costs, even with very fine grit sand paper it will likely only make the piece either awkard looking from many many scratches, not to mention might be a great area for stuff to grow as it will be increidbly hard to clean thoroughly. Although if you are going to glaze it sand away, as most glazes would easily fill in such small scratches.

A flexible rib is very useful, and can be made from a credit card. Wooden spoons, hand made wooden ribs, other kitchen implements are employed in my studio. Make your own tools, and you will make your own marks.

I'll give it a try. These were today's efforts. I've never made anything like a teapot before, just trying to emulate the videos on youtube.

Obbviously, I have a long way to go.

These are some ugly mugs.

Going for the small size, all imperfections are magnified.

The green clay is rather army... no?

I was happy with the thickness of the walls on this 2nd one. But the spout is stupid-looking and they are just too rough. I think I need better ways of keeping the clay moist while working -- that's a source of many problems. Maybe I need to stop more often and put the clay back in the humidity box (a plastic box with wet sides and wet paper, but a dish on the bottom to keep the water from touching directly)

Maybe I need too let the reconstituted clay rest longer.

Butt mostly, I think I should just keep churning them out. I learn something each time I do it. If I make 100 pots then maybe #101, will look decent.

I picked up my 8 bisque fired pieces, I will try and take photos of them before I take them to get glazed and loaded into the anagama kiln. I am eager to see how they behave in the wood fire. I hope they get a lot of nice glossy glassy surface from all that colleted wood ash.

Kiln gets loaded next weekend, and firing starts the following Wednesday, and it goes until sunday, then we let the kiln cool down slowly and we unload the following weekend, and see if we were blessed by the kiln gods.